Vehicular driver monitoring system

ABSTRACT

A vehicular driver monitoring system includes a camera disposed within and viewing within an interior cabin of a vehicle. The camera includes a lens and an image sensor. The camera is operable to capture image data. Electronic circuitry of an electronic control unit (ECU) includes an image processor for processing image data captured by the camera. With a driver of the vehicle sitting in a driver seat of the vehicle, light is reflected off a portion of the driver to impinge at the lens of the camera. The vehicular driver monitoring system, via processing at the ECU of image data captured by the camera, determines a deficiency in captured image data arising from light impinging at the lens. The determined deficiency in captured image data arises from an occlusion at the lens of the camera.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 17/303,917, filed Jun. 10, 2021, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,582,425,which claims the filing benefits of U.S. provisional application Ser.No. 62/705,075, filed Jun. 10, 2020, which is hereby incorporated hereinby reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a vehicle vision system for avehicle and, more particularly, to a vehicle vision system that utilizesone or more cameras at a vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Use of imaging sensors in vehicle imaging systems is common and known.Examples of such known systems are described in U.S. Pat. Nos.5,949,331; 5,670,935 and/or 5,550,677, which are hereby incorporatedherein by reference in their entireties.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Implementations herein provides a driving assistance system or vehiculardriver monitoring system or imaging system for a vehicle that utilizesone or more cameras (preferably one or more CMOS cameras) to captureimage data representative of images interior of the vehicle, andprovides a rotatable or adjustable mirror disposed within the vehicle.The adjustable mirror reflects light reflected off a driver's head intothe field of view of the camera. The camera captures image datarepresentative of the driver's head from light reflected from theadjustable mirror. The system also includes a control or electroniccontrol unit (ECU) including electronic circuitry and associatedsoftware. The electronic circuitry of the ECU includes an imageprocessor for processing image data captured by the camera to detectpresence of objects in the field of view of the camera, such as todetect the driver's head in the field of view of the camera. The ECU,responsive to processing by the image processor of image data capturedby the camera, determines a first position of the driver's head in thefield of view of the camera. The ECU, responsive to determining thefirst position of the driver's head, adjusts the adjustable mirror.Responsive to the adjustment of the adjustable mirror, the position ofthe driver's head in the field of view of the camera moves from thefirst position to a second position in the field of view of the camera.

Optionally, a system includes a camera disposed within an interior cabinof a vehicle equipped with a vehicular driver monitoring system. Thecamera views interior of the vehicle and includes a lens and an imagesensor that is operable to capture image data. The image sensor includesa two-dimensional array of at least one million photosensor elementsarranged in a plurality of rows and columns. The system includes anadjustable mirror disposed within the interior cabin of the vehicle thatincludes a mirror reflector that reflects light incident thereat. Thecamera views the adjustable mirror and captures image data based onlight reflected by the mirror reflector of the adjustable mirror towardthe lens of the camera. The system includes an electronic control unit(ECU) comprising electronic circuitry and associated software and theelectronic circuitry of the ECU includes an image processor forprocessing image data captured by the camera. With a driver of theequipped vehicle sitting in a driver seat of the equipped vehicle, lightreflected off a portion of the driver is reflected by the mirrorreflector of the adjustable mirror toward the lens of the camera. TheECU, responsive to processing by the image processor of image datacaptured by the camera, adjusts the adjustable mirror so that a centerregion of the mirror reflector reflects the portion of the driver towardthe lens of the cam era.

These and other objects, advantages, purposes and features of thepresent invention will become apparent upon review of the followingspecification in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vehicle with a vision system thatincorporates a cam era;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a camera with a field of view having alower resolution and/or higher distortion area near the edge of thefield of view and having a higher resolution and/or lower distortionarea near the center of the field of view;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a camera and adjustable mirror; and

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an exemplary method of capturing image datausing a camera and adjustable mirror.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to the drawings and the illustrative embodiments depictedtherein, a driver monitoring system 10 (DMS) for a vehicle 12 includesat least one interior viewing imaging sensor or camera 16, which may bedisposed at and behind the windshield 14 of the vehicle and viewing theinterior of the vehicle so as to capture image data representative ofthe driver and/or other passengers in the vehicle (FIG. 1 ). Optionally,the system may include multiple interior and/or exterior viewing imagingsensors or cameras. The camera or cameras each include a lens forfocusing images at or onto an imaging array or imaging plane or imagerof the camera. The camera disposed at the windshield of the vehicleviews the cabin of the vehicle, such as for a driver monitoring system(DMS). Optionally, the camera may be disposed at other locationsinterior the vehicle, such as at a center console (e.g., at or near aninfotainment screen) of the vehicle, behind or below a steering wheel(e.g., at an instrument cluster or the dashboard) of the vehicle, or atan interior rearview mirror 18 of the vehicle (where the camera may, forexample, view through a transflective mirror reflector of the interiormirror assembly). The vision system 10 includes a control or electroniccontrol unit (ECU) having electronic circuitry and associated software,with the electronic circuitry including a data processor or imageprocessor that is operable to process image data captured by the cameraor cameras, whereby the ECU may detect or determine presence of objectsor the like and/or the system provides displayed images at a displaydevice for viewing by the driver of the vehicle. The data transfer orsignal communication from the camera to the ECU may comprise anysuitable data or communication link, such as a vehicle network bus orthe like of the equipped vehicle.

Driver monitoring systems (DMS) are generally safety related systemsand/or provide image data that is processed by safety systems of thevehicle. For example, a DMS may view and capture image data and processthe captured image data to provide driver alert warnings if the systemdetermines, via, for example, processing image data, that the driver isdrowsy or distracted. Commonly, the system requests an interior cameraprovide high resolution image data that includes the driver's head orface (e.g., the driver's eyes) periodically or continuously. Highresolution image data may, for example, provide more accurate trackingof the driver's eye movements and/or determination of a driver'sattentiveness and thus more accurate response from the DMS. However, thecameras also often need a wide field of view to account for differencesin driver sizes and positions, and high resolution and wide field ofviews are generally at odds with each other in camera design. That is, acamera with a wide angle field of view either sacrifices resolution(especially near the “edges” of the field of view) and/or greatlyincreases in cost in an attempt to provide greater resolution.

Referring now to FIG. 2 , for most camera lenses, the corner resolutionis lower (and/or the corner distortion is higher) than the centerresolution (e.g., due to the curvature of the lens, particularly whenthe lens provides a wide angle view). That is, the lens provides and/orthe imager captures the highest resolution and/or lower distortion imagedata at the center of the field of view of the camera and the resolutionof the captured image data decreases (and the distortion increases)closer to the edge of the field of view of the camera. In other words,objects present in the center of the field of view of the camera will becaptured with higher resolution/lower distortion image data (i.e., ingreater or more accurate detail) than objects present closer to theedges of the field of view.

Providing DMS cameras that capture high resolution image data of adriver's head or face may increase accuracy of the DMS. However, adriver's head position relative to the DMS camera may change over thecourse of a trip and the head position between different drivers variesbased on factors such as driver height and seat position. Thus, thedriver's head position may change within the field of view of thecameras (such as from the center of the field of view toward the edgesof the field of view) and providing cameras and/or lenses and/or imagersthat capture image data at a sufficiently high resolution near the edgesof the field of view often significantly increases costs. This issue iscompounded in extreme temperature environments (i.e., high temperatureand low temperature conditions) such as vehicles often encounter.

Implementations herein provide a way to avoid DMS loss of function whenthe driver head is present at a corner or edge or periphery of thecamera's field of view (i.e., a lower resolution or higher distortionarea) or otherwise in a non-ideal location in the camera's field ofview. The DMS first determines a position of the driver head. This taskdoes not require a high resolution to accomplish. That is, even when thedriver's head is in a lower resolution or higher distortion area, thecamera has sufficient resolution to allow the DMS (i.e., the ECU orcontrol executing the DMS system) to identify the driver's head and todetermine a position of the driver's head in the field of view of thecamera.

Referring now to FIG. 3 , the DMS 10 includes a rotatable or pivotableor adjustable mirror 30 disposed along an optical path between thecamera and the driver's head region. The camera does not view toward thedriver's head region but views the adjustable mirror, which adjusts toreflect light from the driver's head region toward the lens of thecamera. For example, the camera may be disposed at the instrument panelof the vehicle and may view generally upward, with the adjustable mirrordisposed above the camera and angled so as to reflect light from thedriver's head region downward toward the lens of the camera. Lightreflects off a mirror reflector of the adjustable mirror 30 and isdirected toward the lens and into the field of view of the camera 16.For example, the light reflects off a center region of the mirrorreflector and into the field of view of the camera 16 (e.g., toward acenter of the field of view of the camera 16).

The camera 16 and the mirror 30 are positioned such that a reflectionoff the mirror of the driver's head is within the field of view of thecamera. For example, the camera may be placed near the instrument paneland the mirror may be placed near the top of the windshield (e.g., nearthe driver's sun visor). Light that reflects off of the driver's headreflects off of the mirror and is captured by the camera. Thus, thecamera need not be pointed directly at the driver's head, but insteadmay be positioned elsewhere in the cabin. Optionally, the camera andmirror may be placed proximate one another, such as to avoid potentialinterference of objects or light in the path between the mirror andcamera imager. For example, the camera and mirror may be a singular unitdisposed within the vehicle so that the mirror reflects light off thehead and/or face of the driver into the field of view of the camera.

The mirror may pivot to move the reflection of the driver's headvertically within the field of view of the camera so as to accommodatedrivers of different heights, and/or the mirror may pivot to move thereflection of the driver's head laterally within the field of view ofthe camera so as to accommodate a change in position by a particulardriver when driving the vehicle. The mirror may be mounted at thewindshield (or other suitable location within the vehicle cabin) and maypivot at a pivot joint (e.g., a ball and socket type pivot joint) thatallows for vertical and/or lateral pivoting or adjusting of the mirrorangle relative to the driver and the camera.

The DMS may determine or calculate the mirror tilt angle (e.g., the tiltrelative to the camera or relative to the driver) based on thedetermined driver head position. The mirror may include a mirrorrotation controller and the DMS, responsive to determining the tilt,sends a control signal to the mirror rotation controller.

The mirror rotation controller may change the mirror tilt angle. Thatis, the mirror rotation controller may rotate or tilt the mirror tochange the angle of the mirror relative to the camera. The controlsignal may cause the mirror rotation controller to rotate or pivot oradjust the mirror such that the driver's head moves closer to the centerof the field of view of the camera (i.e., to a higher resolution orlower distortion area). That is, after the mirror rotation controllerrotates or otherwise tilts the mirror, the driver's head will be presentat the center area of the image sensor. In this area, the cameraprovides the best resolution for the driver's face (e.g., eyes) whichmay be used for driver monitoring (e.g., alertness determination). Thisallows the driver's head to remain in the high resolution (lowdistortion) portion of the image sensor of the camera even when thedriver moves (or when different drivers of varying sizes and/or seatpositions that provide varying head positions relative to the cameradrive the vehicle). Thus, the DMS avoids the use of the low resolutionor higher distortion areas (i.e., the corners or edges) of the camerawithout increasing the cost of the camera.

For example, and such as shown in FIG. 3 , the driver's head may be atposition 20 a relative to the mirror 30 and the mirror rotationcontroller may determine a mirror positon 30 a (comprising a verticalmirror tilt angle, a horizontal mirror tilt angle, and/or any otheradjustment parameter enabled by the mirror configuration) to positionthe driver's head in the field of view of the mirror at a positionhaving sufficient clarity or resolution (e.g., the center of the fieldof view of the camera). The driver's head may move (such as if adifferent driver drives the vehicle or if the driver slouches or changesthe seat position setting), such as to a position 20 b relative to themirror 30, and the mirror rotation controller may determine a mirrorposition 30 b to adjust the mirror to maintain the position of thedriver's head at or near the center of the field of view of the cameraand/or to position the driver's head in the field of view of the cameraat a new position having sufficient resolution.

Thus, the system includes a camera or other image sensor within avehicle and having a field of view interior of the vehicle and anadjustable or movable mirror disposed within the vehicle. The mirrorreflects light reflected off a specific portion of the driver (or otheroccupant), such as the driver's head or hands, into the field of view ofthe camera and the camera captures image data representative of thespecific portion from the light reflected from the adjustable mirror.The ECU processes the captured image data to detect the driver's head orother portion in the field of view of the camera and determines a firstposition of the driver's head (or other portion) in the field of view ofthe camera. Responsive to determining the first position of the driver'shead (or other portion) in the field of view of the camera, the systemadjusts the adjustable mirror to move the position of the driver's head(or other portion) in the field of view of the camera from the firstposition to a second position in the field of view of the camera. Thecamera captures image data of the specific portion at a higherresolution and/or lower distortion at the second position as compared tothe first position and thus, the resolution of the captured image datarepresentative of the driver's head or other portion is higher (and/orthe distortion is lower) when the position of the driver's head orportion in the field of view of the camera is at the second position ascompared to when the position of the driver's head or portion is at thefirst position. For example, the second position of the mirror mayposition or reflect the specific portion of the driver (e.g., thedriver's head) closer to the center of the field of view of the cameracompared to the first position.

The system thus may adjust the mirror to reflect light reflected off ofthe driver's head region or eyes toward a higher resolution or lowerdistortion region of the imager of the camera (such as at a locationimaged by a central region of a lens), such as responsive to a newdriver sitting at the driver seat or responsive to adjustment of thedriver seat or the like. During operation, and with the systemmonitoring the driver's head and/or eyes, the system may determineanother portion of the driver to monitor, such as by detecting movementof the driver's hand away from the steering wheel. Responsive to suchdetermination (which may be made via processing of image data capturedby a lower resolution or higher distortion region of the imager or viaother sensors, such as a steering wheel angle sensor), the system mayepisodically adjust the mirror to reflect light reflected off the otherportion of the driver (e.g., the driver's hand or hands) toward thehigher resolution or lower distortion region of the lens and imager ofthe camera. That is, the system may adjust the mirror so as to center adifferent portion of the driver within the field of view of the camera(e.g., from the eyes of the driver to the hands of the driver) byreflecting the different portion toward the center region of the lens.The system may episodically adjust the mirror position to alternatewhich portion of the driver is determined via high resolution or lowdistortion imaging, such as for different applications of the system(e.g., eye tracking and hand/driving monitoring) to provide highresolution or low distortion image processing of multiple portions ofthe driver or regions within the vehicle cabin.

In certain situations, the ECU, via processing of captured image data,may determine a deficiency in the captured image data (e.g., whencondensation deposits at the center of the lens which causes blurrinessat the center area of the image, when there is a strong ghost at aspecial position, or any other issue that causes the center of the fieldof view to be undesirable), and the DMS may change the mirror tilt angleand direct the position of the driver's head in the field of view of thecamera to a different position in the camera's field of view that doesnot have the deficiency (e.g., back to the original position), whichallows the DMS to avoid the loss of function, resolution, clarity, orthe like.

Responsive to determining the deficiency in the captured image datarepresentative of the driver's head (such as at the first position inthe field of view of the camera), the ECU may, via processing of imagedata, determine a portion of the field of view of the camera that doesnot have the determined deficiency and the system may adjust theadjustable mirror to position the driver's head at the second positionwithin the portion of the field of view of the camera determined to nothave the determined deficiency. The deficiency may be determined as anocclusion of the captured image data, the captured image data beingbelow a threshold resolution, or an otherwise undesirable position ofthe driver's head within the field of view of the camera. For example,the ECU, via image processing of image data captured by the camera, maydetermine an occlusion at the camera lens or other type of imageblurring or blockage, and may adjust the mirror tilt angle to shift thereflected image of the driver's head to another generally centrallocation at the camera's field of view (i.e., to reflect the driver'shead image toward the center region of the lens), which avoids thedetermined occlusion yet still provides the higher resolution imaging ofthe driver's head. Alternatively, when a substantial portion or entirehigh resolution (or low distortion) area is occluded or blurred, the ECUmay adjust the mirror tilt angle back to where the reflected image ofthe driver's head is located at a lower resolution (or higherdistortion) area.

Optionally, the mirror 30 may be a motor drive or microelectromechanicalsystem (MEMS) mirror (i.e., a micromirror). The mirror may comprise asingle two-axis or multi-axis rotation mirror (i.e., a mirror thatrotates about two axes, or that may be pivotable at a ball and sockettype pivot joint), or the mirror may include two single axis rotationmirrors (i.e., mirrors that rotates about a single axis). In somescenarios, a single one axis mirror may be used (such as one that pivotsor rotates about a generally horizontal pivot axis).

Referring now to FIG. 4 , an exemplary flow chart 400 starts at step 402with the driver moving his or her head. At step 404, the interior cameracaptures an image of the driver's head. At step 406, the ECU determinesthe position of the driver's head in the captured image data byprocessing the captured image data of step 404. At step 408, the ECUdetermines the mirror tilt angle based on the initial position of themirror 410 and the determined position of the driver's head. At step412, the ECU commands the mirror rotation controller to rotate themirror according to the determined mirror tilt angle. At step 414, themirror rotation controller rotates the mirror 414 to the determinedmirror tilt angle. At step 416, the ECU determines that the driver'shead is now at the center area of the lens and/or image sensor (i.e.,the highest resolution portion of the image sensor or lowest distortionregion of the lens) and at step 418, the ECU detects a feature of thedriver (e.g., the driver's eyes).

The system provides higher resolution and higher contrast and lowerdistortion to imaging of special or particular targets, such as thedriver's eyes for the driver monitor system. A larger field of view forthe camera is desired to allow the camera to capture image data of ahead region that will cover a wide variety of different sized drivers.But image resolution and contrast decrease and distortion increases whenthe driver's head is present at the larger or wider field anglepositions (i.e., when the driver's head is imaged by the edge regions ofthe lens). The adjustable mirror is adjusted to reflect the driver'shead back toward the center region of the lens, which will provide thebest resolution/distortion and contrast and thus improve theidentification rate.

Thus, the DMS includes a camera and a rotatable mirror disposed withinthe cabin of the vehicle. The mirror and camera are disposed such thatlight reflecting off of the mirror is directed toward the camera. Thecamera captures image data representative of the driver's head. The DMSdetermines a position of the driver's head in the field of view of thecamera and sends a control signal to the rotatable mirror to rotate oradjust the mirror so that the position of the driver's head moves closerto the center of the field of view of the camera or to a position in thefield of view of the camera having a higher resolution and lowerdistortion than the original position.

The system may utilize aspects of driver monitoring systems and/or headand face direction and position tracking systems and/or eye trackingsystems and/or gesture recognition systems. Such head and face directionand/or position tracking systems and/or eye tracking systems and/orgesture recognition systems may utilize aspects of the systems describedin U.S. Pat. Nos. 10,065,574; 10,017,114; 9,405,120 and/or 7,914,187,and/or U.S. Publication Nos. US-2020-0202151; US-2020-0143560;US-2020-0320320; US-2018-0222414; US-2017-0274906; US-2017-0217367;US-2016-0209647; US-2016-0137126; US-2015-0352953; US-2015-0296135;US-2015-0294169; US-2015-0232030; US-2015-0092042; US-2015-0022664;US-2015-0015710; US-2015-0009010 and/or US-2014-0336876, and/or U.S.patent application Ser. No. 17/301,853, filed Apr. 16, 2021, now U.S.Pat. No. 11,465,561, and/or Ser. No. 17/249,937, filed Mar. 19, 2021,and published Sep. 23, 2021 as U.S. Publication No. US-2021-0291739,and/or U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 63/200,451, filed Mar. 8,2021, Ser. No. 63/200,315, filed Mar. 1, 2021, Ser. No. 63/200,003,filed Feb. 9, 2021, Ser. No. 63/199,918, filed Feb. 3, 2021, Ser. No.63/198,372, filed Oct. 14, 2020, and/or Ser. No. 62/706,707, filed Sep.4, 2020, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties.

Optionally, the driver monitoring system may be integrated with a cameramonitoring system (CMS) of the vehicle. The integrated vehicle systemincorporates multiple inputs, such as from the inward viewing or drivermonitoring camera and from the forward or outward viewing camera, aswell as from a rearward viewing camera and sideward viewing cameras ofthe CMS, to provide the driver with unique collision mitigationcapabilities based on full vehicle environment and driver awarenessstate. The image processing and detections and determinations areperformed locally within the interior rearview mirror assembly and/orthe overhead console region, depending on available space and electricalconnections for the particular vehicle application. The CMS cameras andsystem may utilize aspects of the systems described in U.S. PublicationNos. US-2021-0155167; US-2018-0134217 and/or US-2014-0285666, and/orU.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/248,736, filed Feb. 5, 2021, nowU.S. Pat. No. 11,242,008, and/or Ser. No. 17/247,127, filed Dec. 1,2020, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,505,123, and/or U.S. provisional applicationSer. No. 63/199,858, filed Jan. 29, 2021, and/or Ser. No. 63/199,526,filed Jan. 6, 2021, which are all hereby incorporated herein byreference in their entireties.

The ECU may receive image data captured by a plurality of cameras of thevehicle, such as by a plurality of surround view system (SVS) camerasand a plurality of camera monitoring system (CMS) cameras and optionallyone or more driver monitoring system (DMS) cameras. The ECU may comprisea central or single ECU that processes image data captured by thecameras for a plurality of driving assist functions and may providedisplay of different video images to a video display screen in thevehicle (such as at an interior rearview mirror assembly or at a centralconsole or the like) for viewing by a driver of the vehicle. The systemmay utilize aspects of the systems described in U.S. Pat. No. 10,442,360and/or 10,046,706, and/or U.S. Publication Nos. US-2021-0155167 and/orUS-2019-0118717, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/248,736,filed Feb. 5, 2021, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,242,008, and/or U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 17/247,127, filed Dec. 1, 2020, now U.S. Pat. No.11,505,123, and/or U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 63/199,858,filed Jan. 29, 2021, and/or U.S. provisional application Ser. No.63/199,526, filed Jan. 6, 2021, which are all hereby incorporated hereinby reference in their entireties.

The camera or sensor may comprise any suitable camera or sensor.Optionally, the camera may comprise a “smart camera” that includes theimaging sensor array and associated circuitry and image processingcircuitry and electrical connectors and the like as part of a cameramodule, such as by utilizing aspects of the vision systems described inU.S. Pat. Nos. 10,099,614 and/or 10,071,687, which are herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

The system includes an image processor operable to process image datacaptured by the camera or cameras, such as for detecting objects orother vehicles or pedestrians or the like in the field of view of one ormore of the cameras. For example, the image processor may comprise animage processing chip selected from the EYEQ family of image processingchips available from Mobileye Vision Technologies Ltd. of Jerusalem,Israel, and may include object detection software (such as the typesdescribed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,855,755; 7,720,580 and/or 7,038,577, whichare hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties), andmay analyze image data to detect vehicles and/or other objects.Responsive to such image processing, and when an object or other vehicleis detected, the system may generate an alert to the driver of thevehicle and/or may generate an overlay at the displayed image tohighlight or enhance display of the detected object or vehicle, in orderto enhance the driver's awareness of the detected object or vehicle orhazardous condition during a driving maneuver of the equipped vehicle.

The vehicle may include any type of sensor or sensors, such as imagingsensors or radar sensors or lidar sensors or ultrasonic sensors or thelike. The imaging sensor or camera may capture image data for imageprocessing and may comprise any suitable camera or sensing device, suchas, for example, a two dimensional array of a plurality of photosensorelements arranged in at least 640 columns and 480 rows (at least a640×480 imaging array, such as a megapixel imaging array or the like),with a respective lens focusing images onto respective portions of thearray. The photosensor array may comprise a plurality of photosensorelements arranged in a photosensor array having rows and columns.Preferably, the imaging array has at least 300,000 photosensor elementsor pixels, more preferably at least 500,000 photosensor elements orpixels and more preferably at least one million photosensor elements orpixels. The imaging array may capture color image data, such as viaspectral filtering at the array, such as via an RGB (red, green andblue) filter or via a red complement filter or such as via an RCC (red,clear, clear) filter or the like. The logic and control circuit of theimaging sensor may function in any known manner, and the imageprocessing and algorithmic processing may comprise any suitable meansfor processing the images and/or image data.

Changes and modifications in the specifically described embodiments canbe carried out without departing from the principles of the invention,which is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appendedclaims, as interpreted according to the principles of patent lawincluding the doctrine of equivalents.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A vehicular driver monitoring system, thevehicular driver monitoring system comprising: a camera disposed withinan interior cabin of a vehicle equipped with the vehicular drivermonitoring system, the camera viewing within the interior cabin of theequipped vehicle, the camera comprising a lens and an image sensor,wherein the camera is operable to capture image data; wherein the imagesensor comprises a two-dimensional array of at least one millionphotosensor elements arranged in a plurality of rows and columns; anelectronic control unit (ECU) comprising electronic circuitry andassociated software; wherein the electronic circuitry of the ECUcomprises an image processor for processing image data captured by thecamera; wherein, with a driver of the equipped vehicle sitting in adriver seat of the equipped vehicle, light is reflected off a portion ofthe driver to impinge at the lens of the camera; wherein the vehiculardriver monitoring system, via processing at the ECU of image datacaptured by the camera, determines a deficiency in captured image dataarising from light impinging at the lens; and wherein the determineddeficiency in captured image data arises from an occlusion, and whereinthe occlusion is at the lens of the camera.
 2. The vehicular drivermonitoring system of claim 1, wherein the vehicular driver monitoringsystem, responsive to processing at the ECU of image data captured bythe camera, adjusts light reflection off the portion of the driver thatimpinges at the lens of the camera.
 3. The vehicular driver monitoringsystem of claim 1, wherein the occlusion is at a first region of thelens of the camera, and wherein a second region of the lens is notoccluded.
 4. The vehicular driver monitoring system of claim 3, whereinimage data arising from light reflected off the portion of the driverimpinges at the second region of the lens of the camera, and whereinimage data arising from the light reflected off the portion of thedriver that impinges at the second region of the lens of the camera isprocessed at the ECU.
 5. The vehicular driver monitoring system of claim1, wherein a center region of the lens of the camera images light at theimage sensor with reduced distortion as compared to perimeter regions ofthe lens.
 6. The vehicular driver monitoring system of claim 5, whereinlight reflected off the portion of the driver impinges at the centerregion the lens of the camera.
 7. The vehicular driver monitoring systemof claim 1, wherein the portion of the driver comprises the eyes of thedriver.
 8. The vehicular driver monitoring system of claim 1, whereinthe portion of the driver comprises a hand of the driver of the equippedvehicle.
 9. The vehicular driver monitoring system of claim 8, wherein acenter region of the lens of the camera images light at the image sensorwith reduced distortion as compared to perimeter regions of the lens,and wherein, responsive to determination of movement of the hand of thedriver, the vehicular driver monitoring system adjusts light reflectionoff the portion of the driver so that light reflected off the hand ofthe driver impinges at the center region of the lens of the camera. 10.The vehicular driver monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the lightreflected off the portion of the driver that impinges at the lens of thecamera is reflected off a mirror reflector of an adjustable mirrordisposed within the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle.
 11. Thevehicular driver monitoring system of claim 10, wherein the camera viewsthe adjustable mirror and captures image data based on light reflectedby the mirror reflector of the adjustable mirror to impinge at the lensof the camera.
 12. The vehicular driver monitoring system of claim 11,wherein the adjustable mirror comprises a pivotable mirror that ispivotable to adjust a position of the reflection of the portion of thedriver impinging at the lens of the camera.
 13. The vehicular drivermonitoring system of claim 11, wherein the adjustable mirror comprises amicroelectromechanical system (MEMS) mirror.
 14. The vehicular drivermonitoring system of claim 11, wherein the adjustable mirror isadjustable about at least two axes.
 15. The vehicular driver monitoringsystem of claim 11, wherein the adjustable mirror is adjustable at leastabout a horizontal axis to adjust a vertical position of the reflectionof the portion of the driver impinging at the lens of the camera.
 16. Avehicular driver monitoring system, the vehicular driver monitoringsystem comprising: a camera disposed within an interior cabin of avehicle equipped with the vehicular driver monitoring system, the cameraviewing within the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle, the cameracomprising a lens and an image sensor, wherein the camera is operable tocapture image data; wherein the image sensor comprises a two-dimensionalarray of at least one million photosensor elements arranged in aplurality of rows and columns; an electronic control unit (ECU)comprising electronic circuitry and associated software; wherein theelectronic circuitry of the ECU comprises an image processor forprocessing image data captured by the camera; wherein, with a driver ofthe equipped vehicle sitting in a driver seat of the equipped vehicle,light is reflected off a portion of the driver to impinge at the lens ofthe camera; wherein a center region of the lens of the camera imageslight at the image sensor with reduced distortion as compared toperimeter regions of the lens; wherein the vehicular driver monitoringsystem, via processing at the ECU of image data captured by the camera,determines a deficiency in captured image data arising from lightimpinging at the lens; wherein the determined deficiency in capturedimage data arises from an occlusion, and wherein the occlusion is at thelens of the camera; and wherein the occlusion is at a first region ofthe lens of the camera, and wherein a second region of the lens is notoccluded.
 17. The vehicular driver monitoring system of claim 16,wherein image data arising from light reflected off the portion of thedriver impinges at the second region of the lens of the camera, andwherein image data arising from the light reflected off the portion ofthe driver that impinges at the second region of the lens of the camerais processed at the ECU.
 18. The vehicular driver monitoring system ofclaim 16, wherein the vehicular driver monitoring system, responsive toprocessing at the ECU of image data captured by the camera, adjustslight reflection off the portion of the driver that impinges at the lensof the camera.
 19. The vehicular driver monitoring system of claim 16,wherein light reflected off the portion of the driver impinges at thecenter region the lens of the camera.
 20. The vehicular drivermonitoring system of claim 16, wherein the portion of the drivercomprises the eyes of the driver.
 21. The vehicular driver monitoringsystem of claim 16, wherein the portion of the driver comprises a handof the driver of the equipped vehicle.
 22. The vehicular drivermonitoring system of claim 21, wherein, responsive to determination ofmovement of the hand of the driver, the vehicular driver monitoringsystem adjusts light reflection off the portion of the driver so thatlight reflected off the hand of the driver impinges at the center regionof the lens of the camera.
 23. The vehicular driver monitoring system ofclaim 16, wherein the light reflected off the portion of the driver thatimpinges at the lens of the camera is reflected off a mirror reflectorof an adjustable mirror disposed within the interior cabin of theequipped vehicle.
 24. The vehicular driver monitoring system of claim23, wherein the camera views the adjustable mirror and captures imagedata based on light reflected by the mirror reflector of the adjustablemirror to impinge at the lens of the camera.
 25. A vehicular drivermonitoring system, the vehicular driver monitoring system comprising: acamera disposed within an interior cabin of a vehicle equipped with thevehicular driver monitoring system, the camera viewing within theinterior cabin of the equipped vehicle, the camera comprising a lens andan image sensor, wherein the camera is operable to capture image data;wherein the image sensor comprises a two-dimensional array of at leastone million photosensor elements arranged in a plurality of rows andcolumns; an electronic control unit (ECU) comprising electroniccircuitry and associated software; wherein the electronic circuitry ofthe ECU comprises an image processor for processing image data capturedby the camera; wherein, with a driver of the equipped vehicle sitting ina driver seat of the equipped vehicle, light is reflected off a portionof the driver to impinge at the lens of the camera; wherein the portionof the driver comprises the eyes of the driver; wherein the vehiculardriver monitoring system, via processing at the ECU of image datacaptured by the camera, determines a deficiency in captured image dataarising from light impinging at the lens; wherein the determineddeficiency in captured image data arises from an occlusion, and whereinthe occlusion is at the lens of the camera; and wherein the occlusion isat a first region of the lens of the camera, and wherein a second regionof the lens is not occluded.
 26. The vehicular driver monitoring systemof claim 25, wherein image data arising from light reflected off theportion of the driver impinges at the second region of the lens of thecamera, and wherein image data arising from the light reflected off theportion of the driver that impinges at the second region of the lens ofthe camera is processed at the ECU.
 27. The vehicular driver monitoringsystem of claim 25, wherein the vehicular driver monitoring system,responsive to processing at the ECU of image data captured by thecamera, adjusts light reflection off the portion of the driver thatimpinges at the lens of the camera.
 28. The vehicular driver monitoringsystem of claim 25, wherein the light reflected off the portion of thedriver that impinges at the lens of the camera is reflected off a mirrorreflector of an adjustable mirror disposed within the interior cabin ofthe equipped vehicle.
 29. The vehicular driver monitoring system ofclaim 28, wherein the camera views the adjustable mirror and capturesimage data based on light reflected by the mirror reflector of theadjustable mirror to impinge at the lens of the camera.
 30. Thevehicular driver monitoring system of claim 29, wherein the adjustablemirror comprises a pivotable mirror that is pivotable to adjust aposition of the reflection of the portion of the driver impinging at thelens of the camera.